A window cleaner whose broken neck went undiagnosed for years has begun a sit-in protest outside Southmead Hospital after claiming the NHS is still failing him now.

Malcolm Hewer was left desperate and furious after his complaint to the NHS Ombudsman about the treatment he received was partially upheld – but now it has not made any difference to the level of care he is receiving.

And he was also left fuming after he wrote to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt for help, and he advised he should complain to the NHS Ombudsman – something he had just spent a couple of years doing.

Now, the 66-year-old is sitting for hours at a time outside the entrance to Southmead, where the North Bristol NHS Trust is based, with placards claiming the health service has failed him.

Doctors initially thought he had only broken his wrist, but after a catalogue of mistakes, lost scans, missed opportunities and other failures, it was two years before they discovered he had broken his neck, and another three years before his neck was operated on.

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By then, it was too late, and now Mr Hewer suffers from severe health problems, including excruciating pain, a loss of the use of his right hand, and problems with nerves in his legs. He struggles to walk, and often has to use a wheelchair.

Earlier this year, after complaining to the NHS Ombudsman about his care at Frenchay and then at Southmead, a report cleared the trust of actually causing his current health problems by not diagnosing his fractured neck back in 2010, but upheld Mr Hewer’s complaint of injustice for the way he was left to wait so long, with lost scans and forgotten appointments, in the years since.

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Since the publication of that report, Mr Hewer said nothing has changed, and he’s still being failed.

“A couple of years ago, my GP tried to get me referred to a specialist in London, but that guy was on a sabbatical, so it didn’t happen,” he said. “Now, I’m trying to see him again, to see if there’s something that can be done, but they say this is it now.”

Malcolm Hewer from Whitchurch who claims he has been made worse after an accident by the NHS. (Image: David Betts Photography)

Mr Hewer, who has been left unable to work since the fall seven years ago, wrote to Jeremy Hunt and Theresa May, and the responses he’s received – as well as a letter from North Bristol NHS Trust chief executive Andrea Young, rubbed salt into his wounds.

He wrote to Mr Hunt about his plight, but Mr Hunt replied with the address of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman – who had already ruled on his case.

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After the ombudsman ruling, he received a letter of apology from Andrea Young, which detailed what was in an ‘Action Plan’ recommended by the ombudsman’s report. She added: “I am so very sorry that you have continued to experience ongoing problems with your health and would like to take this opportunity to wish you all the best for the future.”

That sparked Mr Hewer to action. “I’m going to Southmead just so they know they are still failing me,” he said. “To have that ‘all the best for the future’ feels like it’s taking the mickey. I am not forgetting, I can’t forget what’s happened, and it is still happening – my GP is asking for me to see people, but nothing is happening.”

Mr Hewer said his protest has attracted a lot of attention. “The first time I went, the security guard came out and listened to me, and told me they knew exactly who I was inside the hospital,” he said.

“I’ve had lots of people stopping to find out what it’s about, and even members of staff, nurses and so on, coming out to see me and saying they support me,” he added.

Sarah Dodds, the trust’s deputy director of nursing, said: “We would like to reiterate our apology to Mr Hewer for the ongoing health problems he is experiencing.

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“We have learned from the Ombudsman’s report and shared with all relevant parties, as confirmed in the action plan we sent him in October.

“We are sorry for any offence caused to Mr Hewer in our letter to him and take on board his comments. We are aware that Mr Hewer has been campaigning outside the hospital and I have spoken with him about his concerns,” she added.